Noble Blood - Trial By Combat

Episode Date: December 7, 2021

In 1386 France, Jean Carrouges and Jacques Le Gris faced each other in a fight to the death. The two were former friends turned bitter enemies. Le Gris was accused of a terrible crime, and the courts determined that only God could determine the guilty party.Support Noble Blood:— Bonus episodes and scripts on Patreon— Merch!— Pre-order Dana's book, Anatomy: A Love Story— Sign up to join Dana on the Mary Shelley Pilgrimage in April Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Hey, I'm Dr. Maya Shunker, a cognitive scientist and hosts of the podcast, a slight change of plans, a show about who we are and who we become when life makes other plans. I wish that I hadn't resisted for so long the need to change. We have to be willing to live with a kind of uncertainty that none of us likes. You can have opinions. You can have like a strong,

dance. And then there's your body having its own program. Listen to a slight change of plans on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of IHeart Radio and Grimmin Mild from Aaron Manky. Listener discretion is advised. It was 1386, just a few days after Christmas, and the ground at the dueling field set up behind the Abbey de Sommel Marine de Champs was hard with frost. Thousands of people had poured in from Paris for this spectacle. They had been there since dawn, rubbing their hands together for warmth, watching the rising sun, waiting for the moment the event would begin.

Stands were erected on either side of the field, massive constructions with wooden rails and staircases. One stand was for foreign nobles visiting France. They were, of course, seated according to rank. A second stand was for members of the French court. The third set of stands, the most central, was reserved for the king himself, the young Charles the 6th, and his highest-ranking nobility. He had insisted that the duel be delayed until his return from Flanders so he could witness

it. Beneath the stands for the nobility were benches for merchants and commoners. Although most of them were forced to stand at ground level, face to face with the wooden wall that had been built around the dueling arena, they tried to find a spot where they could see through the planks of wood. The dueling grounds in a suburb of Paris were originally designed for jousting. They were specially converted for this singular rare event, a judicial duel. Two men had gone to court, and the court had been unable to deliver.

a verdict. And so, the men were permitted to leave justice in the hands of God. It would be a fight to the death, and God's favor towards the surviving party would reveal who was innocent and who was guilty. The two men had originally been friends. One had served as the godfather to the other's first son, but years of bitter jealousy had ruined their friendship, and then the accusation of a final terrible crime would lead them here, dressed in full armor, bearing lances, axes, swords, and daggers, ready to kill, and ready to die. The men took their oaths on chairs facing one another. The crowd remained silent.

Interruptions to the duel of any kind, exclamations, shouts, even involuntary gasps or coughs, were forbidden on pain of losing a hand. This was a spectacle, yes, but it was also a legal proceeding. It was God's will speaking through swords. The men agreed to the terms and gave their final silent prayers and mounted their horses. A page shouted for them to ride, and the duel began. I'm Dana Schwartz, and this is Noble Blood. A quick note before this podcast begins.

in earnest. This story includes references to alleged sexual assault. Just a heads up for any listeners who might be particularly sensitive to that content. The France of the 1300s wasn't the same as the France we have today. It was about a third of its modern size and less a united country than a loosely connected group of individual fiefdoms, which were ruled over by minor lords. The minor lords were then, in turn ruled over by overlords. The former were knights and squires. Overlords, with larger land holdings, would be counts or dukes, often members of the royal family. One of those duchies was Normandy, ruled over by the Duke of Normandy. You might vaguely remember from a history class at some point, but in 1066, Duke William of Normandy

crossed the English Channel and defeated King Harold in the Battle of Hastings. He's now more commonly referred to as William the Conqueror, sometimes thought of as the first king of England. But what people sometimes overlook is the fact that William, now a monarch rivaling the King of France, still kept Normandy. For a century and a half, Normandy was in possession of the English crown.

France was eventually able to win it back, but the land remained contentious, and when England crossed the channel to reclaim it again, some nobles in Normandy sided with the English. But one incredibly old family that was always loyal to the French crown was the Carouge family. As his father's oldest son, Jean Carouge IV was well placed to live a respectable life among the courts of France. His father, Jean the third, was the French equivalent of an English shire, Reeve or sheriff, and he was the captain of the fort at Belem. Their family line was long, but it also carried with it a romantic and scandalous history. Rumor had it that a distant ancestor,

a man named Count Ralph, had fallen in love with a sorceress, meeting her in the middle of the night at a pool in the woods. His indiscretion was discovered by his wife, and the next morning, Ralph was found dead with his throat cut. Somehow, the scorned wife was never actually accused of the murder, but the very next day, a mysterious red mark appeared on her face. A few months after that, she had a baby. When that baby, a son named Carl, turned seven, the same red mark appeared on his face.

It was a mark that would carry down in the family for seven generations. That first son was nicknamed Carl LaRouge, Carl the Red, Carl Lerouge, or Carouge. But that story was more a myth than anything. It didn't affect the family's respectability, and certainly no one considered it a portent of violence to come. The Carus family had several fiefs that they controlled, and in turn they answered to the local count of Peres. At the time Jean Carusse the fourth took his oath of loyalty, the Count was a man named Robert. The young John swore to be loyal to him,

and, as was traditional, he kissed the nobleman on the lips. But Count Robert died without any heirs, and so in 1377, Perch was inherited by his older brother, Pierre de Aloncant. Pierre was himself his father's third son, and traditionally that would mean limited prospects, but Pierre lucked out. His two older brothers had become men of the cloth, rising to the esteemed rank of archbishops, which was lovely for them, but meant they couldn't inherit land or titles.

And then the death of Pierre's younger brother Robert meant that Pierre inherited all of his lands as well. The new count came down to Perche and established his court at Argentin, where Jean Carouge dutifully joined him. Jean was given the mostly symbolic position of Court Chamberlain, a respectable role, and he quickly made friend with another of the new Count's Chamberlains, a man named Jacques Legree. Legree was from a slightly less esteemed family. His father was a minor squire, but Legree was well-educated, which was unusual, and which even led to him taking minor clerical orders. He was considered affable and usually noted as being particularly strong and tall.

He was also rumored to be a slight womanizer. Him taking minor clerical orders didn't forbid him from getting married and bearing at least a few heirs. Jean likes Legree well enough that after he got married and had a son, he named Jacques Legree the baby's godfather, a majorly important role in the 1300s. But Jean-Korges wasn't the only one charmed by Legree. Count Pierre almost immediately took a liking to him, honoring him with court positions and gifts, spending time with him.

It was obvious to everyone in court that Lagree was the count's favorite, and that he would quickly be advancing in the political ranks. Beyond his title of Chamberlain, Lagree was granted the position of Captain at the Fort of M, and the Count gave him an example. extravagant gift, an estate, a very nice estate, called Anul Foucault. Friendships sometimes fall apart. The two men, Jean Carouge and Jacques Legree, were about the same age and they have been more or less social equals, until they weren't. Their slow drift away from one another became even more pronounced

in 1380 when Jean was dealing with personal tragedy. Both his wife and his only child, the son that Legree had once held as godfather died. Torn apart by grief and frustration at his middling position in Count Pierre's court, Jean Carouge went off on a military campaign to try to bolster his reputation. Over the five months that he was serving under the king's command, Jean did manage to raise his profile slightly, and he became known as a respectable soldier. But also, in the time away, Jean came to understand the painful truth of the risk he was taking out on the battlefield.

He had no living heirs, and if he died, the Carouge name would die with him. All of the property, the reputation that his family had built up for generations, it would disappear, inherited by someone else, someone with a different family name and a different family line. So when Jean-Caroos returned home after half a year away, it was with the determination that he would find a bride as quickly as possible. And he did, a young woman named Marguerite de Tiboville, likely still a teenager at the time. Marguerite was described by contemporary sources as being wealthy and very beautiful. The latter was a perk.

The former was essential for Jean-Courge, though he had a good fan. family name, he didn't quite have the wealth to match. Marguerite, in that regard, was a perfect fit for him. Her family was rich, but their reputation was a little tarnished. His father was a Norman who had sided with the English in the fight against the French king. A marriage with the Carusges, an old and loyal family, would help bolster Marguerite's family's reputation. Jacques Legree wasn't present at the wedding, nor at any of the wedding. of the celebratory festivities that followed. But the relationship between Jean and Legree

would soon become even more strained. In marrying Marguerite Thibbeville, Jean Carouge was especially hoping that her dowry would include her father's lovely estate at Anul Foucaon. There was only one problem. Those lands had been purchased by Count Pierre a few years prior for 8,000 livres.

Jean tried to wrestle the lands back from Pierre, even going so far as to take him to court. The issue became so heated that eventually Pierre had to go to his cousin, the king, to once and for all establish the formal written royal approval for the purchase of the lands. And here's the kicker. Perhaps you remember, Count Pierre had already given the land away, as a gift to his favorite chamberlain, Jacques Legree. So, the relationship between Jacques Legree and Jean Carouge at this point was bitter. And from this point on, the relationship between Jean and Count Pierre would be downright antagonistic.

Over the next three years, the two men would be embroiled in legal battle after legal battle. After the death of his father, Jean would sue the count again, because Jean had been expecting to inherit his father's position as captain of the castle at Bilem. After the death of his father, Jean sued the count again, because Jean had been expecting to inherit his father's position as captain of the fort of Bilem. That was traditionally how things went at the time, and, for what it was worth, Legree had already been made captain of a fort. But disliking Jean Carouge, the count passed him over, and the count would spite him yet again, when he would deny Jean permission to buy a few neighboring fiefs to expand his holdings.

All the while, Jean's resentment and jealousy toward Legree simmered. Every slight that Count Pierre made toward him, Jean imagined Legri behind it, whispering in the Count's ear, influencing him against him. But even frenemies can sometimes find ways to mend fences, and in 1383, Jean Carouge and, Jean Carouge and, Jacques Legree found themselves at the same party, thrown by a squire named Jean Crispin. The two men saw each other from across the room. They were both wearing their family colors, carouge in red with silver accents, and Legree in silver with red. They shook hands,

and Jean politely introduced Legree to his wife, Marguerite, for the first time. Legree was charmed. Onlookers remarked how taken he had seemed by Marguerite. The next year, Carouge went on another campaign to bolster his reputation. Though that military expedition itself was a failure, and Carouge lost five of his nine men, along with a good amount of his money, he still came out fairly well in terms of his reputation. He was even awarded a knighthood on the field of battle. Now, Jean was technically higher rank than Jacques Legree, who was still a squire. But Jean was also close to bankrupt.

and by the time he returned to Perche, he was exhausted and resentful, especially once he became aware of how much higher Lagri's star had risen socially in the time he was gone, and how much money Lagri had been given by generous nobleman. Jean was barely home a fortnight before he had to continue on to Paris in order to collect his back wages. He left his wife, Marguerite, staying with his own mother, her mother-in-law, Nicole. It was during this brief trip that everything would change. Jacques Legree would allegedly commit the crime that would send him and Jean Carouge on the unstoppable path toward battle to the death.

Marguerite recounted the story later. On January 18, 1386, Jacques Legree's squire, a man named Adam Lovil, knocked on the door. Typically, a servant would have answered the door. But Marguerite's mother-in-law was attending to business in the next town over, and she had taken most of the servants with her. And so Margaret opened the door herself to find Lovell, who bowed deeply, and informed her that Jacques Legree had come to call on her. Jacques knew that her husband was away.

He loved her, and he wanted to see her. Marguerite told the squire that she had no interest in seeing Legree, but Legree came forward anyway and forced himself through the door. door. He offered Marguerite money in exchange for sex, which she refused, and then Jacques Legree raped Marguerite on her bed while his squire helped hold her down. He told her that he would kill her if she told anyone, and then he left and closed the door behind him. Marguerite was silent, drowning in the shame and terror until her husband returned a few days later. She barely looked at him throughout dinner and couldn't offer more than a word the rest of the evening

while they prepared for bed. Only after everyone in the house was asleep that night did Marguerite fling herself onto her knees at the side of her husband's bed. Weeping, she told him everything that had happened. Barely able to contain his rage, Jean summoned a group of his friends, courtiers including his mother and Marguerite's family. This was, after all, her virtue. you and their honor on the line. Marguerite repeated her story exactly how it happened to the assembled group. Should you have told me of falsehood, Jean said to his wife, never more shall you live with me. Marguerite shook her head. Everything she had said was true. Then, Jean said stoically, the squire shall die. The brain trust of friends and family that Jean had assembled

filed formal charges against Legree at Count Pierre's court, but neither Jean nor Marguerite went to the count in person. They were well aware that there was no chance that Count Pierre would ever rule against his favorite, in favor of a man he hated. And they were right. Count Pierre dismissed the charges almost immediately. And so, Jean Carouge took his grievance to the king.

King of France at this time was a young Charles VI. A man we've talked about on this podcast, particularly in the context of the tragic ball of the burning men, a party during which several of his courtiers would burn to death when their wild man costumes caught on fire. But that tragedy would still be several years in the future at this point, and it would be several more years after that before Charles VI's madness would emerge. At this point he was just a young king, willing to hear, out the accusations from one night against one squire. The case met before Parliament on July 9, 1386.

Jacques Legree, denying everything, outraged at the very accusation, hired a man widely considered to be the best lawyer of the time, a man named Jean LeCucque. LeCocke's notes are one of historians' main sources of details for the proceeding of the trial. His notes also mention, for the record, that even though he was defending, Legree, he had doubts as to whether Legree was actually as innocent as he claimed.

Legree's family, perhaps also doubting his innocence, tried to get him to insist on being tried through the church, which, because he was a cleric in the minor orders, would be his right. The church probably would be more sympathetic to him, and it would remove the option of deadly trial by combat. But Legree refused. He was innocent, he said, and he wanted to challenge the accusations against him directly. Before the men presented their cases, Jean Carouge threw a glove to the floor, literally throwing down a gauntlet, challenging Legree to a duel.

Legree picked it up, symbolically accepting. The king ruled that a trial by combat would only be permitted if the court could not come to a definitive verdict. In the meantime, they heard the evidence. Adam Loville and all of L' Gris' servants testified, all defending their master against the accusations against him. When Jacques Legree testified himself, he talked about how Jean had always been jealous of him and how he was famous for having a temper. He said that he believed Jean had made up this entire story and threatened to beat his wife if she didn't go along with it. Plus, it would have been impossible for him to ride that far, 50 miles round trip in one evening in the snow, and besides, he had an alibi. On cross-examination, those last points hit a bit of a snag. Legree admitted that a man of his

resources and riding ability would, in fact, have been able to ride 50 miles round trip, even in the snow. And slightly more damning, one of the men who was supposed to corroborate his alibi, couldn't make it to court because he himself had been arrested in Paris during the trial. Arrested for rape. But the most important testimony of all came from Marguerite herself. Marguerite was visibly pregnant when she took the stand, although because medical science at the time believed that a woman couldn't conceive from rape, that wasn't considered a relevant piece of evidence. But the very fact that Marguerite was telling the world what had to be

had happened to her at all was considered powerful evidence. It would be scandalous and shameful to her family. Why would a woman ever go through all of this if it wasn't true? The court deliberated, and they came to their decision, or rather their known decision. The case would be left in the hands of God. Jean Carouge and Jacques Legree would have a trial by combat, and it wasn't just the men's lives at stake. If Legree was victorious, Marguerite would burn at the stake for perjury. The duel was originally scheduled for November of that year, but King Charles demanded that it be pushed back until December 29th, when he would be back from a campaign in Flanders. He didn't want to miss what was quickly becoming the most exciting event of the year. Between the time that the trial

happened and the duel would take place, both Marguerite and King Charles' wife, the young Queen Isabeau, gave birth to sons. Marguerite's son was healthy, but the young prince was ill, and he died just a day before the duel was scheduled to take place. Rather than shroud the palace in mourning, King Charles VI, perhaps already showing an early stage of madness, became frenzied. He demanded an endless stream of parties and festivities that would culminate in the massive event of the judicial duel. The stands were teeming with people, noblemen both French and from around Europe. Separate stands were built for women with specially made aisles to make it easier for ladies overcome from the blood or violence to excuse themselves. On the ground, peasants and merchants

elbows each other to try to get better views. Marguerite wore black, and she sat in a carriage overlooking the field where the duel would be taking place. Her husband approached her, moments before he went to the field. Lady, from your accusation and in your quarrel, I am thus adventuring my life to combat Jacques Legree, he said. You know whether my cause be loyal and true. Marguerite, knowing full well with this battle, risked for both of them, replied, My lord, it is so, and you may fight securely for your cause is good. Both men came on to the dueling ground from opposite sides, wearing full metal armor.

Each was armed with a lance, a long sword, an axe, and a dagger. They each also carried with them a jug of wine, some bread, coins to pay for the use of the field and a fodder for their horse on the off chance that the battle would require them to stop for the night and then start again the next morning. Sitting on throne-like chairs on raised platforms, both men swore an oath in front of the silent crowd. This was a legal proceeding. Anyone who disturbed the duel by entering the field of battle would be put to death. Anyone who disturbed the proceeding by shouting, or crying out, would risk losing a hand. So, though the field was teeming with spectators,

it was an eerie and silent place. Soon it would only be filled with the sound of horses' hooves and clashing metal. Both men prepared, adjusting their lances, mounting their horses. And then a herald cried out, Do your duty! And the duel began. They charged at each other, both with their lances drawn, and both broke their lances on the other's shield. They continued to loop around on their horses, this time swinging their battle axes at one another. Legree, the stronger man, was able to get a killing blow with his axe to the neck of Carus's horse. But Carouge, leaping safely from his dying mount, was able to kill Legree's horse from the ground. Now the men were facing off on foot with their long swords.

Karouge slipped and fell to the ground, and Lagri approached and managed to stab him in the thigh. But even bleeding and writhing in pain, Jean was determined. Still on the ground, his thigh in open wound, he grabbed Lagri by his armor and pulled him off balance. Legree fell onto his back, his armor too heavy to allow him to rise again. Now Jean Carouge had the upper hand. He tried to stab Lagri's three. threw his metal armor, but the plating was too thick. And so Jean straddled his enemy and used the handle of his small dagger to break the faceplate on the front of Legree's helmet. With his sharp

dagger inches from Legree's eye, Jean Carouge asked Legree to confess what he did. In the name of God and on the peril and damnation of my soul, I am innocent, Jacques Legree responded. Jean Carouge didn't need to hear anything else. He stabbed Legree in the neck and killed him. Stumbling, he rose to his feet. Have I done my duty? He asked the court. Still shaking, he pulled off his helmet and knelt before the king. For his victory, King Charles gifted him a thousand livres

and an annual income of 200 livres a year. Still weary, woozy and exhausted, Carus was cleaned up and he went to Greek. his wife. Together they rode in the carriage to Notre Dame in Paris, where they knelt in prayer side by side to thank God for their victory. Winning the judicial duel would make Jean-Courouge something of a national celebrity. He would receive another 6,000 lever in gold, and the king would give him a prestigious position in the royal household as a chevalier-d honor, or a bodyguard for the king. It was a raise, both in income and in social.

standing. If you happen to recall from the episode on Charles VI and his madness, later in Charles' life, he would have an episode of madness in the woods, lashing out at those around him. John would actually be one of those men who at the time managed to subdue him. Jean would continue to try to get the estate Anul-Fa-Fa-Fa-en again and again, the estate that he had so desperately wanted for so long, but Count Pierre would never yield. And he would he would never forgive Jean Carouge for killing his friend Jacques Legree. As for Jacques, after he died on the battlefield, his corpse was dragged to the gallows. He, already dead, was hanged. Hanging, after all, was the sentence for rape, and by virtue of

losing the duel, Jacques Legree had been found guilty. That's the story of the bloody trial by combat between Jean-Courouge and Jacques Legree, but keep listening after a brief sponsor break to hear a little bit more about how the story has been told throughout history. And on a quick personal note, I just want to thank everyone who supported the show and listened to it. I've had a wonderful year getting to create these stories and write them and read them, and I'm looking forward to being able to continue doing it in 2022. If you want to support the show, we have a Patreon, Patreon. Patreon.com slash Noble Blood Tales, where I publish episode scripts for the episodes, and also do mini-series.

I'm going over episode by episode with my friends of the Showtime show The Tudors and the CW show, Rain. Also, if you want to support me, I have a book available for pre-order. It's a young adult novel called Anatomy a Love Story about the dawn of surgery in 19th century, Edinburgh. And if you're interested sort of in the bloody history of this podcast, I really think it'll interest you. Also, I think there are a few spots.

left on the Common Ground's pilgrimage that I'm leading this spring to London and Sussex discussing Mary Shelley and Frankenstein. I am so excited. It's an amazing company that I'm doing it with. It's a few days of just reading and walking and talking and writing. There's a link to sign up in the episode bio. You can have opinions. You can have like a strong stance. And then there's your body having its own program. I'm Dr. Maya Shunker. a cognitive scientist and hosts of the podcast, a slight change of plans, a show about who we are and who we become when life makes other plans. We share stories and scientific insights to help us all better navigate these periods of turbulence and transformation.

There is one finding that is consistent, and that is that our resilience rests on our relationships. I wish that I hadn't resisted for so long the need to change. We have to be willing to live with a kind of uncertainty that none of us likes. Listen to a slight change of plans on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Will Ferrell's Big Money Players and IHeart Podcasts presents soccer moms. So I'm Leanne. Yeah.

This is my best friend, Janet. Hey. And we have been joined at the hips since high school. Absolutely. Now a redacted amount of years later, we're still joined at the hip. Just a little bit bigger hips, wider. This is a podcast. We're recording it as we tailgate.

You soccer games in the back of my Honda Odyssey with all the snacks and drink. Sidebar. Why did you get hard seltzer instead of beer? Oh, they had a bogo. Well, then you got it. Do you want a white collar or something here? Just take it.

What are y'all doing? Microphones? Are you making a rap album? Oh, I would. Come on. Could you believe? I would buy it. Cut through the defense like a hot knife through sponge cake.

That sounds delicious. Oh, you're lucky. I'm not a drug addict. You are. You are. I'm not an alcoholic. You are. I'm not a killer.

I love this team, and I'm really trying to be a figure in their lives that they can rely on. Oh. Listen to Soccer Moms on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The duel between Jean-Carrouge and Jacques Legree was infamous. In the generations to come, there would be countless accounts of what had taken place, in addition to countless scholars and legal minds, who attempted to figure out whether Jacques Legree was actually guilty or whether he was falsely accused. Two religious chronicles recount a story about Marguerite on her deathbed,

confessing that the rape had actually been at the hands of another man. But those stories are just hearsay and conjecture, and there's no real evidence of that. Even still, up until the 1970s, the Encyclopedia Britannica published those claims in their account of the trial, which was described in their entry for the word duel. Even now, certain aspects of the story, as it's re-told, aren't exactly true. Take the title of the brand-new Ridley Scott film about this event

and the book it was based on, The Last Duel. Though this was one of the last major trials by combat, the actual last duel in France would be 200 years later in 1547. Noble Blood is a production of IHeart Radio, and Grimmin Mild from Aaron Manky. The show is written and hosted by Dana Schwartz. Executive producers include Aaron Manky, Alex Williams, and Matt Frederick. The show is produced by Rima Ilkjali and Trevor Young.

Noble Blood is on social media at Noble Blood Tales, and you can learn more about the show over at Noble Blood Tales.com. For more podcasts from IHeartRadio, visit the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. I'm Dr. Maya Shunker, a cognitive scientist and hosts of the podcast, a slight change of plans, a show about who we are and who we become when life makes other plans. I wish that I hadn't resisted for so long the need to change. We have to be willing to live with a kind of uncertainty that none of us likes.

You can have opinions, you can have like a strong stance. And then there's your body having its own purpose. Listen to a slight change of plans on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.